Unpaid Carers: Cross-Government Action Plan
House of Commons · Written Statements · 14 Jul 2026 · 1 speech · Official Report
The Government are today publishing a cross-Government action plan for unpaid carers. This action plan delivers on the Government’s commitment to strengthen support for unpaid carers across England. It sets out a co-ordinated programme of cross-Government activity to improve the visibility of unpaid carers, improve access to support, and ensure caring responsibilities are better recognised across public services and the workplace. The plan has been developed collaboratively across Government with input from delivery partners. It responds to the need for more joined-up information and advice, improved data sharing between services, and stronger recognition of unpaid carers in workforce planning and service design. It also reflects the diversity of carers’ experiences, including the specific needs of young carers. The action plan is structured around three core themes: recognise, refer, and reach. Under the recognise theme, we will improve the identification and visibility of unpaid carers across health, education and employment settings. Key actions include developing “my carer” functionality within the NHS app to support self-identification and care management; improving the identification of young carers in education settings; embedding carer identification within personalised care planning; supporting NHS staff with caring responsibilities; and commissioning further research to better understand barriers to identification and improve data collection and employer support....